Long Lake vs Rice Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Long Lake and Rice Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of F (Very Poor). Both are in Stearns County, Minnesota.
Long Lake and Rice Lake are both in Minnesota — a same-state head-to-head where the comparison comes down to lake-specific differences in depth, watershed, and monitoring history rather than the broader state-level water-quality regime. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Long Lake (F) versus Rice Lake (F). The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
With grades this close, the choice between the two lakes turns on non-water-quality factors: depth, fish species, public access, distance from home. The per-lake pages below cover all of those.
Long Lake
Very murky, less than 2.5 ft of visibility.
Rice Lake
Very murky, less than 3 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Long Lake | Rice Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | F (Very Poor) | F (Very Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 2.5 ft | 3 ft |
| Phosphorus | 61 µg/L | 50 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 41 µg/L | 39.5 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 35 ft | 41 ft |
| Surface Area | 487 acres | 1,513 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 23 | 21 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade F. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Long Lake: 2.5 ft, Rice Lake: 3 ft) and what you want from the lake. Long Lake supports more documented fish species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.